admin
Tendai Gukutikwa
Weekender Reporter
A bitter dispute over the custody of two young children has erupted between an estranged couple in Mutare.
The Mutare Magistrates’ Civil Court granted custody of the children to their father, Washington Nyika on August 2.
However, their mother, Rumbidzayi Mombeyarara is challenging the ruling and has filed an appeal.
The matter will heard in court on August 25.
The children at the centre of the wrangle are aged four and two.
Mombeyarara says she is fighting for the best interests of her children, adding that the judgement was unfair and biased.
Mutare magistrate, Ms Purity Gumbo dealt with the initial child custody matter.
In submitting his application for custody, Nyika told the court that he and Mombeyarara separated in April 2022 due to irreconcilable differences and allegations of domestic violence.
“Upon separation, my ex-wife took our children and left them in the custody of her elderly parents’ at their rural home in Murambinda. Her parents, working under the instruction of Mombeyarara, have denied me access to my children,” said Nyika.
He argued that a third party cannot be granted custody of the minor children since both parents are still alive and capable of taking care of them.
“I do not see why her parents should take care of our children when she and I are both alive. If she cannot take care of our children as she has proven by giving them to her parents, then I should be the one looking after them since I am their father,” he said.
Nyika also said that he fears for his children’s safety if they are to be left under the custody of their maternal grandparents as they could be sexually abused.
He told the court that in the past, at least two people have been sexually abused while in the custody of the elderly couple.
He produced the case numbers as evidence.
“Her parents are of ill-health, and are unable to take care of my minor children. I also fear that they will not be able to protect them and my children might end up being sexually abused. This happened in the past to other females who were in my former in-laws’ custody,” he said.
Nyika also stated that he was in a better position to take care of his children in a more conducive environment, adding that his new wife is willing to assist in taking care of the children.
“If l get custody of the children, it will not only better their chances of protection from predators, but they will also bond with their half siblings from my second marriage,” said Nyika.
In response, Mombeyarara said she temporarily left the children in the custody of her parents as she looked for employment.
She said Nyika was an abusive and violent man.
In her ruling, Ms Gumbo said it was clear that the couple was fighting at the expense of the children.
She said the two were using the children as pawns to settle their feuds.
“The court will emphasize that in an application of this nature, the goal is achieving the best interests of the child or children, and not determine the domestic issues of parents who separated.
“This is clearly a case where the father and the mother are involved in a bitter cat-and-mouse game, with the minor children at the centre. In dealing with the question of custody of minor children, the court is guided by the best interests of the children.
“The concept of best interests of the child in Zimbabwe is not only considered at the level of formal law, but also at the level of living law. The situation that the minor children find themselves in when parents divorce is distressful.
“Invariably, children are caught between a rock and a hard place. The best interests of the child have been interpreted to mean the child’s educational, emotional, psychological, mental and physical well-being,” she said.
She went on to grant the custody of the children to Nyika.
Mombeyarara will get access to the children on weekends and school holidays.
However, this did not go down well with Mombeyarara as she felt that the court had been unfair and biased in dealing with the matter.
She made an ex-parte application for stay of execution soon after Ms Gumbo’s ruling.
The two minor children were taken back into her custody a week later pending the appeal.
Online Reporter